The book is a superb achievement-a major study of an important and often misunderstood figure in American political and legal history.' -Lawrence M. Professor Lurie covers Taft's career up to the point when he achieved his life's goal: the Supreme Court. Ross, Cumberland School of Law, Samford University, 'This lucid, fascinating, and beautifully written account invites us to reconsider the place in history of William Howard Taft. By explaining why Taft's presidency was much more than a mere interlude between the progressive presidencies of Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson, Lurie's superb book should kindle greater appreciation for Taft among historians and general readers alike.' -William G.

Lurie demonstrates that Taft's vision of a vigorous federal role in promoting the public interest inspired his progressive policies on tariff reform, conservation of natural resources, labor, federal administration, and antitrust enforcement. With Taft he has chosen a biographee very suited to his own talents.' -Walter Nugent, The Journal of American History, 'In this pithy and engaging study of William Howard Taft's political career, Jonathan Lurie argues convincingly that Taft was more progressive than previous historians have recognized and that Taft accurately characterized himself as a progressive conservative. Friedman, Stanford Law School, 'Lurie has written extensively and authoritatively on legal, military, and constitutional subjects. The book is a superb achievement a major study of an important and often misunderstood figure in American political and legal history.' Lawrence M. Regardless, after learning the Tafts were included on the long list of the cemetery’s illustrious residents, I was able to return to Arlington and pay my respects a little over ten months later.'This lucid, fascinating, and beautifully written account invites us to reconsider the place in history of William Howard Taft. Even if my historical interests had been broader at the time, there was only so much walking my sister and I would have been up to at ages 5 and 8, respectively. On that initial stop my family limited itself to the Tomb of the Unknowns, a tour of Arlington House, and the burial sites of Robert, Jacqueline, and John F. Taft - on subsequent pilgrimages to the cemetery as opposed to my premiere visit in summer 2003.

I first saw all the aforementioned graves - including those of President and Mrs. Figures of note buried in the Tafts’ vicinity include Secretary of War Robert Todd Lincoln, General Omar Bradley, Secretary of State Alexander Haig, and civil rights activist Medgar Evers. The 27th president and 10th chief justice is laid to rest beside his wife, former First Lady Helen “Nellie” Taft, who is best remembered for the role she played in the introduction of Japanese cherry blossoms to the capital city.

William Howard Taft by Jonathan Lurie